Respondents were asked, "What is your opinion on the availability of abortion?" and given the response options: "By law, abortion should never be permitted"; "The law should permit abortion only in case of rape, incest or when the womans life is in danger"; "The law should permit abortion for reasons other than rape, incest, or danger to the woman's life, but only after the need for the abortion has been clearly established"; and "By law, a woman should always be able to obtain an abortion as a matter of personal choice."
The ideology measure is based on respondent self-placement in response to the following question: "On a scale from 1 to 7, where 1 is extremely liberal, 7 is extremely conservative, and 4 is exactly in the middle, where would you place yourself?" For the purposes of this table, respondents plac- ing themselves 1, 2, or 3 are considered "liberal"; those placing themselves at 5, 6, or 7 are considered "conservative"; and those placing themselves at 4 are considered "moderate".